A coated abrasive article comprises a backing material with an abrasive coating on at least one side. The abrasive coating typically comprises abrasive particles in a resin matrix that serves to bond the abrasive particles to the backing material, and may comprise one or more layers.
Coated abrasive articles are available in a wide variety of forms including sheets, discs, and belts. Some coated abrasive articles are intended for hand-held use (including use on hand-held sanding blocks) and others are intended for use on powered sanding tools. From a manufacturing perspective, it can be difficult to adapt the manufacturing process to supply, at a reasonable price, coated abrasive articles in the wide variety of shapes and sizes demanded by end users. Consequently, some manufacturers concentrate on producing only the most widely-used forms of coated abrasive articles with the result that other products are difficult to obtain and/or are comparatively expensive.
With a view to simplifying the supply of coated abrasive sheets to end users, it is known to supply rolls of coated abrasive sheet material from which any required length can be cut. It has also been proposed, in AU 2004100059A (Cetram Pty Limited), to provide a roll of abrasive paper which includes transverse lines of perforations for tearing the paper into smaller portions of a predetermined size. Outside the field of coated abrasives, it is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,712,210 (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, Windisch et al) to provide a web of lofty nonwoven surface treatment material with a plurality of longitudinally-spaced and laterally-disposed perforations to permit the web to be separated into a plurality of sheets of abrasive surface treatment material.